To earn your real estate license in Utah, you must complete 120 hours of approved prelicensing courses, pass the real estate exam, choose a real estate brokerage, and apply for your license. Grab a pastrami burger and let’s dive into the steps of how to become a real estate agent in Utah.
1. Meet Utah’s Legal Requirements
To get a real estate license in Utah, you need to meet a few standard eligibility requirements. You must be a U.S. citizen or lawfully admitted resident, at least 18 years of age or older, and have a high school diploma or GED.
Applicants who have an existing criminal record may still apply for a real estate license. However, according to Administrative Rule R162-2f-201, if you have been convicted of a felony in the last five years, or have been convicted of a misdemeanor involving fraud, misrepresentation, theft, or dishonesty within the last three years, you don’t qualify for real estate licensure in Utah.
For any other convictions, when you apply, you must include your criminal history along with the necessary documents related to the conviction and the Qualifying Questionnaire. After submitting your fingerprints, your application will be forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the FBI’s Division of Criminal Justice Information Systems (CJIS). Upon investigation, each applicant will be considered on their own merits.
Did you know?
Utah has mutual recognition agreements with three states or jurisdictions: Georgia, Mississippi, and Alberta (Canada). If you are already a licensed real agent in these states, you do not have to take prelicensing courses or pass an exam to receive a Utah real estate license. Instead, you must complete the Utah reciprocity application and complete a background check to get your real estate license.
Utah is also a turf state, which does not allow out-of-state agents to conduct any type of real estate business within state lines. To learn more about real estate license portability in Utah, check out our guide to real estate license reciprocity and portability.
2. Complete Required Prelicensing Courses
If you meet the eligibility requirements to become a real estate agent in Utah, you can start taking your prelicensing courses through an online real estate school in Utah. These courses cost between $399 and $805 and consist of 120 hours of required prelicensing education that cover the following topics:
- Ownership of real estate
- Real estate brokerage and law of agency
- Contracts
- Property management
- Settlement
- Federal taxation
- Real estate finance
- Valuation and appraisal
- New construction
- Federal laws
- Utah law
Did you know?
Any active member of the Utah Bar who is in good standing and qualified under the real estate license law is exempt from taking the real estate sales associate prerequisite course.
If you want a top accredited online real estate school that is easy to follow, keeps you engaged, and includes a pass guarantee, check out The CE Shop. They offer a range of package options for aspiring Utah real estate agents and boast a 96% student satisfaction rate.
3. Take the Utah Real Estate Exam
After completing your prelicensing courses, you’re ready to take the Utah real estate license exam. Since you take the Utah real estate exam on a computer, you will receive your score report immediately after finishing, and know whether you passed or failed. If you do not pass the exam, you must wait 24 hours before registering to retake it.
If you pass the national or state section of the exam but fail the other, you need to retake the failed portion within six months. If both sections of the exam are not passed within six months from your first testing date, you will be required to retake the entire exam. You can retake the Utah real estate exam as many times as necessary.
Exam Details
Test Format | Multiple choice |
Test Length | 80 nationally focused questions 50 state-specific questions |
Time Limit | 240 minutes |
Items to Bring to the Exam |
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Passing Score | 70% to pass the Utah Real Estate Salesperson Exam (at least 56/80 on the national portion and 35/50 on the state portion) |
Pass Rate | Unfortunately, Utah does not post its average state pass rate |
Schedule Your Exam
All Utahns who want to become a real estate agent in Utah must register for the exam on the Pearson VUE website. You’ll need to create an account and pay the $59 examination fee during registration. Be sure to review the Utah real estate candidate handbook for all exam and license details.
In addition to the identification documents listed above, you will be required to bring a completed copy of the Candidate Education Certifying Document to the testing center. You’ll receive a copy of this document from your education provider after completing your prelicensing courses. This document is only valid for one year and must be taken to the exam center and sent with your real estate application. It must be submitted within 90 days of passing the real estate exam.
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4. Get Fingerprints & Background Check
Fingerprints are now required for all Utah real estate license applicants. You can receive fingerprinting services after your exam at the Pearson VUE centers located in Bountiful, Draper, Ogden, and Orem, but only if you make a separate appointment in advance. You can make your fingerprinting appointment and pay the $12 fee in your Pearson VUE account by selecting “UTFP-Utah Fingerprint Appointment (Sales only)” from the exam list. Your fingerprint receipt must be submitted with your license application.
If your testing center does not provide fingerprinting services, you’ll receive two fingerprint cards and a signed fingerprint waiver. You’ll then need to make an appointment at a local law enforcement agency or third-party fingerprinting vendor.
5. Pick a Company to Work For
In order to hold an active license in Utah, you must find a sponsoring brokerage with which to affiliate your license. To make your choice a little bit easier, check out our in-depth guide on choosing the right real estate company to work for. Although there are many successful brokerages in the Beehive state, below you’ll find the top five brokerages reported for 2021.
Team Name | Company | City | Volume | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ames Team | RE/MAX Associates | Layton | $152,769,951.52 |
2 | Red Sign Team | Keller Williams Realty | Orem | $118,493,433.50 |
3 | View Utah Listings Team | Century 21 Everest | Cottonwood Heights | $86,459,825.00 |
4 | Josh Johnson Team | Century 21 Everest | Cottonwood Heights | $73,376,006.55 |
5 | Peter Morket Real Estate Group | Keller Williams Realty | Orem | $35,373,475.00 |
(Source: Real Trends 2021)
Utah Cities With Highest Median Sales Price 2021
The higher that homes are selling for means the higher commission you have the opportunity to get as a real estate agent in Utah. To get a sense of which cities are bringing in the bucks for Utah real estate agents, check out this sales data from Towncharts.com below:
Rank | City | Median Home Value |
|---|---|---|
1 | $1,035,300 | |
2 | $862,200 | |
3 | $777,800 | |
4 | $705,800 | |
5 | $569,300 | |
6 | $559,600 | |
7 | $485,400 | |
8 | $469,000 | |
9 | $448,800 | |
10 | $444,400 |
6. Apply for Your License
The final step of becoming a real estate agent in Utah is to apply for your real estate license. This is relatively simple since you’ll complete the four required documents for application at the testing center after you receive a passing score. Then, you’ll submit your real estate application via the Utah MyLicense portal, where you will need to create an account.
You will also need to upload the following documents from the real estate sales agent license checklist:
- Salesperson application (signed, dated, and issued by the Pearson VUE testing center)
- Qualifying questionnaire (signed, dated, and issued by the Pearson VUE testing center)
- Consent to a background check (signed, dated, and issued by the Pearson VUE testing center)
- Certification of legal presence (signed, dated, and issued by the Pearson VUE testing center)
- Candidate education certifying document (signed, dated, and issued by your real estate school)
Each document must be submitted as portable document format (PDF) files. You’ll also pay a non-refundable application fee of $157, which includes your application fee, recovery fund fee, fingerprint processing fee, and FBI RAPBACK enrollment fee, which is an additional processing fee. After your application is submitted successfully, it takes four to six weeks to obtain your real estate license in Utah.
7. Start Your Real Estate Career
Now that you’ve learned how to become a real estate agent in the Beehive State, you’re ready to start your real estate journey. For more information, take a look at our Top 25 New Real Estate Agent Tips From the Pros or 14 Real Estate Agent Tips for 2021 to jump-start your career.
